furious jet passengers were ordered to pay £20,000 to get back to Britain after an airline ran out of cash.

Furious jet passengers were ordered to pay £20,000 to get back to Britain after an airline ran out of cash.

Staff marched the travellers to cashpoints after a six-hour stand-off during which they refused to leave the plane or hand over the money.

Their ordeal began when the Comtel Air flight carrying more than 180 people from Amritsar in India landed to refuel at Vienna.

They were told the firm had “run out of cash to fund the last leg of the trip” to Birmingham and the flight would only continue if they coughed up the cash.

Blind passenger Gurhej Kaur, 80, said she could not get her ­medication which was in the hold.

A relative, Dalvinder Batra, 34, added: “It’s absolutely disgusting. There are still people stuck out there. We have been told that the company has gone bust.”

Another traveller, Tarlochan Singh, 57, of Wolverhampton, said: “They wanted all the money in cash. Everyone was furious, that is why we had the sit-in.”

And Chanhj Dehal, 32, added: “We were escorted to the cashpoint to take money out. They said there was a deficit of 24,000 euros.”

Reena Rindi, who was aboard with her two-year-old daughter, said: "We wanted to go home. We'd been stranded for about three to four days. Who was going to take us home?"

She said passengers agreed to pay so they could fly to Birmingham and added: "We all got together, took our money out of purses - £130.

"The children under two went free.

"If we didn't have the money they were making us go one by one outside in Vienna to get the cash out."

After the whip-round their return to Birmingham was delayed four hours.

Many bought their £500 tickets via a Smethwick travel agent. But they did not answer inquiries.

Comtel Air's director of passenger services Bhunpinder Kandra said: "I have heard what happened, it shouldn't have happened, and I will investigate why it happened.

"The people who had to pay the money will receive a refund."

Asked if the company was going bust, he said: "There is no chance of that. Comtel is a very strong company, 16 years in Vienna."

A spokesman for the Civil Aviation Authority said: "It is an Austrian airline, so we have no direct jurisdiction over it.

"We are looking to see if people who bought their holiday in Britain bought it through an ATOL-licensed tour operator. If they did, that tour operator needs to step in to arrange new flights for them.

"If that makes the tour operator go bust, then we would step in to bring ATOL-protected people home."

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are aware that a number of British nationals have been affected by difficulties with Comtel airlines flights from Amritsar to Birmingham via Vienna.

"We have been, and remain, in touch with the relevant authorities including the airline for clarification on how British nationals due to fly in the coming days will be affected.

"Our current advice to anyone affected is to contact their tour operator, travel agent or the airline for further information and about possible alternative arrangements. We would also advise that they monitor our travel advice for India for any updates.

"We took a number of calls from distressed British nationals in relation to this issue and we have provided consular assistance to those who have sought it."

A spokeswoman for Birmingham Airport said: "Comtel Air has been contracted by a number of UK travel companies to facilitate flights to Amritsar, via Vienna. Comtel Air has a contractual arrangement with an approved airline to operate this service.

"Clearly we are very concerned about this situation and understand the distress that this is causing those passengers directly involved and their loved ones.

"Comtel Air has been operating from Birmingham Airport to Amritsar since October, and has so far offered a successful operation to several hundred passengers. We are therefore very disappointed that the operator is having these problems this week and we are urgently investigating the matter to get some clarity going forward.

"Comtel Air is an Austrian-registered airline and is therefore not within the CAA's jurisdiction. Anyone due to travel with the airline is advised to contact the travel company they have booked the flights with for advice. Those passengers overseas need to ascertain whether their travel arrangements are protected by the ATOL scheme."

The airline is registered in Austria. Anyone due to fly with it is advised to contact the travel agent they booked through.